The quintessential Paris and other Paris, France Things to Do Tips

The Eiffel Tower is perhaps the most common item associated with Paris,. The tower is quite a sight in person, especially at night. After dark, the tower is illuminated with thousands of little sparkling lights every few minutes. It sparkles for 10 minutes at the top of the hour.

It is worth the climb to the top for a birds-eye-view of this beautiful historically-rich city. There is a gift shop and a post office where you can send postcards home with the much-coveted Eiffel Tower postmark. Also, a restaurant is available to those who wish to dine in style.

The best view is available at the second level...at the top, you can't really make things out too well. But everyone has to go to the top!

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Address: Trocadero
Directions: You can't miss it!!!
The nearest Métro stations are Bir-Hakeim to the southwest, and Trocadéro to the northwest.
Website: http://www.tour-eiffel.fr/

Beneath the gilded dome of the Invalides cupola rest the remains of Napoleon Bonaparte, an emperor for the French and a King for Italy. Napoleon's body lies in six coffins: one is tin sheeted iron, then mahogany, the third and fourth are made of lead, the fifth of ebony and the sixth of oak. All these coffins are placed within a red porphyry sarcophagus.

The rest of the Invalides complex was originally designed to be a military hospital. Most of the complex houses a large military museum and is one of the largest military museums in the world.

After paying homage to Napoleon, you can see some of his actual uniforms, guns and medals enclosed in glass nearby.

In the museum, you can see Napoleon's dog and his horse, stuffed and mounted. But don't take a photo with a flash!

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Phone: 01 44 42 37 67
Address: Metro: Varenne, Invalides
Directions: Esplanade des Invalides, 7th Arrondissement

I personally enjoyed the Moulin Rouge show: "Feerie." Sure, it's a tourist-charged excursion, but it's still a fabulous trip.

We chose to go with a tour company...Paris Vision (they're located on Rue de Rivoli across from the Tuileries Garden and offer a most excellent exchange rate.) It cost us approximately 85 Euros each: The bus picked us up at our hotel, we went on the illuminated tour of Paris, a bateau-mouche ride on the Seine and finally the show.

Yes, it was a long wait to get in and we didn't get back to our hotel until 4 a.m. But it was worth it. It's a wonderful show...highly recommended to anyone looking for something new to do.

You can't take photographs...Some people will try to sneak cameras in and pop off a few exposures without getting caught. The 'security guards' don't joke around with that stuff. The red windmill of the Moulin Rouge is worth seeing illuminated at night. Granted, there are a plethora of tour buses there then, but you can shoot around them.

It is now forbidden to smoke in the Moulin Rouge.

During the day, it's less crowded, but you have to deal with potential pickpockets (as you do all the time), so be careful. It's like they wait for unsuspecting tourists to waltz by and then trail them.

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Phone: 33 (0) 153.098.282
Address: 82 boulevard de Clichy. Metro: Blanche
Website: http://www.moulinrouge.fr/home-gb.html

How can any trip to Paris be complete without a stop at the Louvre? Here, you can witness the enigmatic smile of the Mona Lisa, bask in the beauty of the Venus de Milo and wander around, mesmerized by the vast amount of art that is available.

As you wander the great halls, you'll marvel at the size of some of these paintings! Right now, you can no longer take any photos of paintings. Sculptures are fine, just no photos of paintings. Grab some postcards at the gift shop.

The best way to get to the Louvre is through the Metro at stop Palais Royal/Musee du Louvre. You'll have to trek through the Carrousel du Louvre, the cute shopping center, throw your bags on the x-ray belt and try to contain your excitement for you are about to see some of the most beautiful works of art in the world.

Hours: Wed-Mon, 9:00-18:00, closed Tuesday. The pyramid is illuminated on Wednesday and Friday evenings.

Must-see: Venus de Milo, Winged Victory, Mona Lisa, The Coronation of Napoleon, La Grande Odalisque, The Raft of the Medusa, Liberty Leading the People, Michelangelo's Slaves.

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Address: Metro: Palais Royal/Musee de Louvre
Website: http://www.louvre.fr/louvrea.htm

The Musee d'Orsay picks up where the Louvre leaves off, housing French art of the 1800s.

Must see: "The Source" by Ingres; "Birth of Venus" by Cabanel; "The Painter's Studio" by Courbet; "The Romans of the Fall" by Couture; "Olympia" by Manet; "Luncheon on the Grass" by Manet; "Whistler's Mother"; "The Dance Class" by Degas; "The City Dance" and "The Country Dance" by Renoir; all of the van Goghs; "Jane Avril Dancing" by Toulouse-Lautrec; and the Rodin sculptures.

The Orsay is a fabulous museum featuring phenomenol artists. Plus, it offers a great gift shop. It's located along the Seine River.

If you have the highly-coveted museum pass, you can enter through Gate D, I believe. You still have to wait in line, but it's not as lengthy as the general admission line.

Please, arrive early or later in the afternoon. The line gets very lengthy. If you are planning on going on a Tuesday (when most other museums in Paris are closed), go in the afternoon. Hit up the Rodin Museum and Invalides first, then go to the Musee d'Orsay. Everyone else has the same idea to arrive right when it opens and even the line for museum passholders is very long.

As with virtually any major museum, you must have your bags checked/scanned.

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Phone: 33 (0)1 40 49 48 14
Address: 62, rue de Lille
Directions: RER C: Musee d'Orsay
Metro: Solferino, three blocks south of the Orsay
Website: http://www.musee-orsay.fr/

The Pere Lachaise Cemetery is one of the most visited cemeteries in the world, attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors each year.

Another reason for its popularity is that it is a beautiful cemetery. The headstones and graves are really beautiful. Very picturesque. Bring some black and white film.

Père LaChaise cemetery has become more than just a cemetery, it has also become a main tourist attraction. Those interred include such notables as Chopin, Oscar Wilde, Gertrude Stein, Maria Callas, Honore de Balzac, Eugene Delacroix, the Doors' frontman Jim Morrison, Colette, Camille Pissaro, Alice B. Toklas, Heloise and Abelard and even Jane Avril.

An interesting note: There are more than one million people buried in the cemetery. However, there are only 100,000 tombs. This is due to the old practice of burying poor in mass graves. Corpses are removed from the unmarked plots every so often to make room for new residents.

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Phone: 01 55 25 82 10
Address: 16, r. du Repos
Directions: Metro: Pere Lachaise
Website: http://www.pere-lachaise.com/

The Rodin Museum is housed in Auguste Rodin's mansion in Paris. The mansion itself is a work of art, not to mention the beauty of the gardens. At this museum, you are able to stroll among such masterpieces as The Kiss, The Hand of God, The Cathedral, The Three Shades, The Gates of Hell, just to name a few. There are also works of art by his lover Camille Claudel.

The Rodin Museum has recently been renovated and it looks quite nice. The gift shop is larger and that is where you enter now. Some things have been moved around but it still is one of my favorite museums in Paris. Less crowded than the Louvre, but just as important in your art-yssey.

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Phone: 01 44 18 61 10
Address: 77 Rue de Varenne
Directions: Line 13 : Varennes
Website: http://www.musee-rodin.fr/welcome.htm
Other Contact: Fax: 01 44 18 61 30

The Seine is a major river of northern France, forming the country's chief commercial waterway.

The river is 485 miles long, and France's second longest, after the Loire.

From the water on a bateau-mouche ride, you can get beautiful views of Notre Dame, the Louvre, the Musée d'Orsay, the Conciergerie and the Eiffel Tower. The northern side of the river is described as the Right Bank (Rive Droite) and the southern side as the Left Bank (Rive Gauche).

I highly recommend taking a bateaux-mouche ride along the Seine...spectacular views await! The best company is Bateaux-Mouche. The boats are large and glass-enclosed.

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